


Training Montage

by rafamarkos5998



Series: Son of Shiva [4]
Category: DCU (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Hood: Lost Days, Robin: Son of Batman (Comics)
Genre: And they're trying to stop the train crash, Bruce Wayne is a Bad Parent, Damian Wayne is Robin, Damian Wayne is a Brat, Damian Wayne is a Little Shit, Except Shiva, Family Fluff, Gen, Good Parent Slade Wilson, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Hurt Jason Todd, I wish I had teachers like that, Jason Todd Deserves Better, Jason Todd Needs A Hug, Jason Todd and Damian Wayne Meet in the League of Assassins, Jason Todd and Damian Wayne are Siblings, Jason Todd is Red Hood, Jason needs to learn how to use his power properly, Kinda obvious at this point, Montage, No beta we die like mne, Past Talia al Ghul/Bruce Wayne, Resurrected Jason Todd, Richard Dragon is a good teacher, Sandra Woosan is Jason Todd's Parent, She's fine with it, Suicidal Tendencies, Suicidal Thoughts, Training, Training Camp, a warm-up exercise really, and rise like Jason Todd, even if she hasn't been there, everyone knows that Jason is rushing towards death, he's trying, it's a background event, let's see if it stays that way, or more like training tour 2.0, repeatedly on demand, so he goes to the most extreme teachers there are, that's definitely going to be useful, they have turned out similarly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:41:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26288908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rafamarkos5998/pseuds/rafamarkos5998
Summary: Now that Jason knows that he can afford to push his body like he never has before, he needs to learn how to use it. Luckily, Talia can provide the right set of trainers.
Relationships: Cassandra Cain & Jason Todd, Jason Todd & Damian Wayne, Jason Todd & Sandra Woosan, Jason Todd & Slade Wilson, Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, Richard Dragon & Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul & Jason Todd
Series: Son of Shiva [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857853
Comments: 30
Kudos: 282





	1. A much-needed warm-up session (with Mom)

**Author's Note:**

> I've been hoping to get this down for a while, but I've not had decent ideas to work with for a while. I'm not exactly comfortable with how this is turning out, but I think it's important for me to let go of this idea before it becomes worse through more and more massaging.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason wakes up at the League compound and asks Talia to train him. They both know that she will not be sufficient as a teacher for an immortal boy about to enter his prime. She still spars with him, eager to build a relationship with her eldest as he prepares for the most challenging set of mentors possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to have more Mom!Talia and Son!Jason content. That's why this chapter exists. It is also a better leadup to the segments with the various teachers, but it is still stuff I felt was important to further establish character and deepen the relationship shown.

Jason wakes up to the sunlight streaming in through the window, but his body protests sharply as he struggles to regain access to all his mental faculties. His brain keeps screaming at him to go back to sleep, but the light outside indicates that it is clearly past time to wake up.

And as the memories of the absurdly long series of flights come crashing back in, he lets a long groan escape his lips.

Getting to Talia's compound had been _difficult_. She is no longer on good terms with Ra's - she has failed to provide him with an heir for Ra's to ~~pass on his throne to~~ _possess_ after his current body fails him. Talia is never going to lay with men she deemed beneath herself, and if Bruce Wayne isn't worthy of her, who is? ( _Literally any other functioning human being_ , Jason's brain helpfully provides, but Ra's is a different kind of person who looked for different things in an ~~heir~~ _body he wants to possess_.) Ra's couldn't get one by himself - his children had been mostly female, the only exception being Dusan al Ghul, and Ra's would never accept a man with what he considered 'genetic defects'. (Again, was albinism a serious defect given the fact that Ra's needs to stay indoors looking over papers nearly 99% of the time to effectively manage his empire? Jason decides he is up for providing Ra's further insights about his role as the head of illegal corporate entities in the 21st century.) Bruce is the only person Ra's has ever considered a worthy heir - and he would never agree to kill. (That's a lie, he just won't agree to Batman being branded as a killer. He had been fine with killing Jason, after all, since there was never going to be any evidence of it.)

Well, all that morbid pondering has definitely woken him up now, he might as well take advantage of it.

As Jason staggers to the attached bathroom, he notes that Talia has placed him in one of the special rooms on the base that actually has one of those. Most of the rooms used by common League personnel do not have attached bathrooms, and he thanks Talia again for her generosity. He doesn't think he could have handled the way common bathrooms made him feel now. The vulnerability, the fear of being preyed upon when he couldn't protect himself properly.

He had learned that lesson the hard way on the streets of Gotham. Anything designated 'for common use' is a cesspit to steer clear of whenever possible.

He brushes his teeth with the unnaturally soft toothbrush (seriously, where did Talia get these things? They looked and felt more expensive than his last safehouse) and runs a bath. He hasn't run a bath in a long time, he's been stuck between not having the time or the facilities necessary. Baths tended to be expensive, _not that either Bruce or Talia could ever really understand the concept like normal fucking people_ , and when you're trying to run the drug trade honourably, you don't get the margins needed to have safehouses with baths.

Well, at least Talia seemed to be trying. She had only spoken of the thing once when she had come to Gotham to try and visit her sons. And when Jason explained his reasoning, she had remained strangely silent on the matter, giving him free rein to do as he wished.

Thankfully, the tub gives him an alert that the water had been filled and is at the desired temperature. He jumps off that train of thought and steps into the bath. He lets himself sink down into the warm water, feeling his body float a bit as his muscles relax.

And now that he has nothing to do but luxuriate in the tub and occasionally lather on some soap, his mind wanders again.

Bruce had tried to chain him to Gotham again. Or maybe, he was trying to use the fact that all Gothamites are, to some extent, chained to Gotham. Despite the shit he used to give Bruce about not actually living in Gotham, Jason can't deny that the man is attached to the city. All of the Bats are, to some extent - even Cass, although she spends most of her time in Hong Kong.

Still, the man had tried to tell him to stay in a place that was only ever going to hurt him. The Joker had caused Jason's death yet again, and Bruce seemed intent on doing nothing. Going by the news he's seen in the past three weeks of airport hopping, the old man didn't even try to arrest the guy this time. It was Kate who caught him, probably with a tip from Babs. Mom seemed to agree.

His thoughts go back to Talia, and how calling her _Mom_ felt both so surprising and so... right. Talia had been there for him when no one else was - and even though she had tried to use him for her own ends, she had never put her interests before his. She had made sure that he was never coerced into anything he didn't agree with, and had even let him go on his mission to assassinate Batman even though she loved Bruce.

Jason wonders if it is possible to honestly love someone and use them at the same time. Then he remembers seeing the love in Bruce's face when he threw the Batarang at him, and he remembers how Bruce had loved him and hurt him at the same time back then.

Given that it's Taia, he decides that he'll take being used by her over being hurt by Bruce. Talia had proven that she would never put his interests second - Bruce had shown that he was only too happy to disregard what Jason wanted and needed for his own... ego? Pride? Arrogance? No, that's not it either. Well, whatever it was, Jason wants no part of it.

\----------------------------------------

Talia looks at Jason as he walks through the open garden, approaching her slowly yet steadily. His gait, while somewhat unsteady, carries no sign of unease - merely the signs of fatigue. Travelling on commercial flights and sleeping in dingy airports is tiring.

"Good morning, Jason. I trust you had a good night's rest?"

"Slept just fine, Mom."

He smiles, his teeth shining brilliantly in the sunlight.

_When you smile, I fall apart._

"Sit down, _Habibi_. I'll have some breakfast brought for you."

Jason looks like he's about to say he can make it himself, but realizes where he is. A flash of sadness crosses his face, only to be immediately replaced with... resignation. No, _peace_.

And as he digs into the pile of naan bread before him, Talia thinks back to how they got here.

Talia had initially taken Jason in to get back with Bruce. It was a time when she still believed he would accept her, despite her adherence to her father's beliefs. She thought she could convince him that there was more to the League than Ra's al Ghul's mindless quest for immortality and world domination, that there was enough common ground between her and Bruce to be able to work together, to _be_ together.

Those hopes and dreams had been shattered soon enough.

And yet as she nursed the boy back to health, she had found herself... _caring_ for him. Found herself looking forward to his company, to the look in his eyes when he looked out at the horizon. The look he had when he began humming a soft melody, probably intended for small children. The look he sometimes gave her after she brushed his hair.

She was the Daughter of the Demon. Just because she cared for the child, didn't mean she couldn't look after her own interests. But strangely enough, she found herself... accounting for his interests and needs. The same way she always accounted for Damians.

And yet when the time came for him to go after Bruce, she let him leave. Against all the instincts inside her that screamed at her to hold ~~the boy~~ _her son_ close, she let him go.

And he died for it.

When Jason confronted Bruce with the Joker in tow, her people were watching. And when he never rose from the rubble, they dug him out and spirited him away back to her.

When faced with Jason's broken body, Talia regretted ever leaving him. She regretted not having held onto him when she had the chance and mourned the loss of ~~the~~ _her_ child. He was merely a boy, not even an adult yet, and he had died twice, at the hands of people who did not deserve to hold that power over him.

And when Jason woke up underneath her, she threw all caution to the wind and held him tight.

_My son._

Fortunately, Jason seems to be oblivious to the reverie she had been caught in.

Jason nibbles on some egg whites, as the fried potatoes lie untouched. Earlier that morning, Talia had instructed her staff to try to steer the course towards something more palatable to an American palate, and it seemed to be paying off in terms of properly introducing the boy to the cuisine of the Indian subcontinent.

"So, I had a request, if you don't mind."

In any other situation, Talia would have been offended that the idea that there was something she wouldn't do for her children. But now, it's clear that it's merely a way to mask his nervousness and indecision.

She nods at him, encouraging him to proceed.

"I want... teachers. I need to learn how to fight. Well, re-learn, actually. Given that I can't die, I can't suppose most of the tactics I know are that useful."

Talia curls her lip in the beginnings of a grimace, as she ponders over her child learning how to deal with mortal wounds. She knows that he wouldn't have brought it up without being sure that it was something that was worth exploring.

He would tell her more when he was ready.

"Do you have any preferences for who you would like to learn from?"

"Just that the list needs to include Deathstroke, Richard Dragon, Lady Shiva and the All-Caste."

Well, that would be somewhat troublesome, but not impossible. Not even difficult or expensive. Just... troublesome.

"I don't suppose you can go off to sparring with Deathstroke after having spent a few weeks in cramped airports. Will you train with me for a few weeks first?"

"That sounds great, Talia."

Talia smiles. _That's a good sign._

This way, she can needle him into talking about what he's keeping to himself.

\----------------------------------------

Three months have passed, and Talia is starting to regret her decision to train with Jason.

Well, not exactly. She cannot really regret spending time with her son. However, the training aspect has certainly been pointless.

Firstly, Jason told her everything about what he had experienced in the time between his death and his reawakening on the first day of being on their compound near Lahore. Needling it out of him hadn't been necessary.

Secondly, they had not found any useful information on the things that Jason had told her about. There was barely any information about the Book of Souls, the place called Limbo or the idea of the Endless being interested in normal human life. All that was there was apocryphal references to unknown sources, nothing concrete. Even most secondary sources could not be found, let alone a primary source.

(It was likely the All-Caste would have some information on the matter, and thus that research project was dropped from the highest priority to a relatively low one. They could keep accumulating whatever information they could get their hands on while Jason trained.)

Thirdly, every time she sparred with Jason, he took her down with ease. Unfailingly.

Strangely enough, every time Jason managed to disarm and subdue her cleanly and effectively, she did not feel any shame.

All she felt was a rush of pride.

As Jason wrenches her sword out of her hand and drops her with a powerful sweep of his legs - his third takedown that afternoon - she surrenders immediately, not even bothering to try to escape.

The bruises from her last attempt to wrench herself out of his hold were still healing.

A knock on the door. Jason backs off and yells "come in!" before Talia can react.

And as she sits up and turns to the door, she sees her ~~blood~~ _younger_ son walk in.

\----------------------------------------

Talia knows that on most occasions, her son Damian ~~al Ghul~~ Wayne stands ramrod straight, eyes blank and emotionless. He projects an aura of proud superiority and infinite confidence. He hasn't earned the nickname 'Demon Brat' for nothing.

This is not a normal occasion.

"Mother." His tone is still clipped and reserved, and Talia wonders if it is too late for her to hear her child address her with affection instead of cold formality.

"Jeez, kid, take a break. It's just me and Mom here. Nobody will complain about you showing a lick of humanity here."

She notices that Jason is looking at her and Damian. His behaviour reminds her of Shiva, who would often preempt conversations while guarding her at meetings to speed them up.

He's Shiva's son. He wants to train under her, but he doesn't call her his mother. That's something he has granted to Talia alone, and given how much he holds onto the memory of Catherine, she knows how much the idea means to him.

She watches as her younger son relaxes and lets his shoulders droop, relaxing as Jason lays a hand on his shoulder. Her heart swells in her chest, and it's almost painful. Almost.

_My sons. Look at my sons!_

Talia doesn't remember feeling like this before. She has never felt this desire to show off her children to the world, to make everyone aware of how kind and brave and good they are.

Despite all the violence that they have been subjected to, they have still turned out good.

She gets up off the floor and proceeds towards her youngest, and embraces him with an openness she hasn't shown towards him before.

She regrets that despite how long they have been around each other, it's only now that she is able to be this way around her own son.

Maybe they can make up for lost time now.

As she lets him go, she looks into his green eyes, and takes in his troubled countenance. The obvious unspoken question hangs in the air.

"The Wayne household is falling apart. It's utter chaos." Damian clearly doesn't want to talk about this, but recognizes that it is important for them to know. "Drake has gone on an indefinite strike, Grayson has gone back to Blüdhaven, Brown now avoids Batman on the field and Gordon has stopped providing technical support unless it is for a case the Birds of Prey are also working on. I was patrolling with Father for a while, but I managed to get away by proposing that I try to come here and recruit Wendy Harris to our cause by utilizing your support without exposing my intentions."

"And what are your intentions, Habibi?"

"I merely wished to meet you. I had no concrete plans for what I would do once that was achieved."

"It's okay, brat, we can worry about that later. We'll come up with something depending on what you decide to do."

Talia shares a glance with Jason, silently thanking him. She isn't good at this, no matter how much she tries. Being a mother to Jason is easy because of how willing he is to make it work. Damian is a different proposition entirely.

But she is the Daughter of the Demon. She does not give up easily.

She knows she has hurt her son before, at a time when she saw him slipping away from her reach even though he was barely an adult.

She cannot afford to hurt him now.

Bruce has always taken the affection and loyalty of his children for granted. She will not make that mistake.

As she envelops Damian in her arms again, slowly moving her fingers through his hair, she is reminded of how young he is. A boy barely into puberty, still years away from legal adulthood. He has seen too much violence for a child his age. She will ensure that he also sees a correspondingly large amount of familial affection.

Dimly, she notices Jason going to the door and checking outside. He looks around, and comes back, picking up a few towels from the rack near the entrance along the way.

As he hands her one and another to Damian, he helps the both of them up onto their feet. After towelling himself off, he picks Damian up and plants the boy on his shoulders, in a single, swift, fluid motion. He strides out the door, casually pointing out improvements that have been made to the base in the past three months.

Talia feels the swell of emotion inside herself.

_Pride is not the word I'm looking for. There's so much more inside me now._

\----------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the real meat of the story is taking a while to get here, but I really like writing all these character interactions and they feel like the more vital parts of the story to me. As much as this series is called 'Son of Shiva', a lot of it is going to be about how Jason is _not_ like Sandra. As a writer, it feels important to be able to show that there's more to Jason than being the second version of everything.


	2. Learning to Last (ft. Deathstroke)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason begins training with Deathstroke. His goal - learning to take everything thrown at him, and get back up for more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think that Deathstroke's military history doesn't play as much of a part as it should in stories with the Bats. Here's my (admittedly shallow) attempt to change that.

Jason uses his high-power binoculars to look at the inconspicuous, ordinary warehouse that stands three blocks south of his current position, scoping out the territory and trying to get a lay of the land. He looks over to the Starbucks across the street, the diner that stands two building away on the same side of the road, and the LexCorp building standing one block to the east.

It's official - he _hates_ Metropolis.

Gotham might be a dark, dingy sewer, but it's _home_. The people there might be brusque and abrasive, but they're honest and grounded. The people in Metropolis are hopelessly nice and optimistic, always smiling. If Jason didn't know that Superman lived here, he would have been convinced that this place had come straight out of some dystopian 21st-century reinterpretation of Brave New World.

Hell, half the time he got into a conversation with a retail worker, he was convinced that that was exactly what was afoot, right underneath Superman's watchful gaze. People couldn't be this naively happy, could they?

The commercial hub of Gotham is filled with high rises belonging to shitty exploitative companies, but they're mostly harmless. They engage in the crimes that every other company engages in - tax evasion, mistreatment of employees, inflated revenue projections, failed attempts to be the next "SCRUM Agile Blockchain Cloud" business. Metropolis might be a shining beacon of hope and home to the blue alien wearing tights, but they need to deal with the biggest entrepreneur in the world living there and wreaking havoc on a completely different scale. There's something unsettling and cruel about being treated like an NPA by a cutthroat CEO who tangles with _Superman_ for breakfast. Not to mention that Luthor's company has rarely ever promised a product that didn't deliver. In fact, his company is often guilty of delivering more than the customers ever asked for or wanted.

Although given that Talia has had her run at being the CEO of LexCorp, he should probably lay off on the hate. At least the guy is trying to be a decent dad for Kon.

Seriously, what has the world come to? _Lex Luthor_ is a better parent than Bruce. The world is truly going to shit.

Then again, his own mother is a villain. The Daughter of the Demon, no less. Maybe it's a hero thing.

He shakes his head, stowing the binoculars away inside his backpack and looking at his watch.

 _9:51_. It's almost time.

Jason wonders why he even signed up for this. He could have reconsidered at any point.

Talia wouldn't have judged him either. She knows that he is in a pretty bad place at the moment, what with having come back from the dead after having shot himself with the intention of staying dead. He's lucky no one has brought that up yet.

Instead, he had to try and bury his emotions by punching people in the face. _Way to go, Jason._ He's really becoming too much like Bruce.

Well, at least he was training with just Deathstroke for now. Dick had managed to survive that mostly unscathed, and all he had was training as an acrobat and the best ass in the universe.

Jason has none of those things, but he does have the ability to stay alive by virtue of what is just plot armour at this point, so he supposes that he'll be fine.

Lifting the bag onto his shoulder, Jason jumps off the roof of the building and grapples over to the next rooftop. It's time to show up for lessons.

\----------------------------------------

Okay, this is _definitely_ not going well.

As Deathstroke throws him (for the fifth time that morning, if Jason's memory is working correctly) into the side of one of the shipping containers lying in the warehouse, he ponders all his life choices to figure out why he ever landed in a situation like this.

"Get up already. Both your brother and your sister have done better than that when they trained under me."

As Jason gets back up, he feels compelled to raise his eyebrow, as he takes a moment to observe Slade.

"Get back up. I know you can do better. I've seen you do better."

Jason cocks his head to the side, closely observing Slade's movement.

He remembers how Cass had described Slade - a chorus of voices, each conveying a unique idea. However, to him, it doesn't feel that... discordant. Yes, there are many, _many_ , different possibilities, but most of them are feints within feints within feints. Still, there's a lot of them that could be real attacks, and Jason definitely doesn't know Slade's physical limits.

Probably thanks to his history with Shiva. It's difficult to fight an opponent who can completely see through you.

Fortunately (or unfortunately), lying is something Jason understands _very_ well. He is a Bat, after all. No matter how much he hates that fact.

He shakes his head, letting his body relax and not taking a fighting stance at all. No point in giving Slade any ammunition against him.

And now, he notices Slade begin to shift.

"Finally. Something worth my time."

Well, at least it's working. Slade keeps shifting as he circles around Jason, his body trying to predict an attack and assume a form that can be the best counter.

Jason lets his body remain loose, standing casually in front of the best mercenary ever.

Slade continues to shift from stance to stance, moving from threatening him with a strong punch to warning him to watch out for a heavy kick. Jason feels certain that the merc is trying to force an error out of him.

Jason shifts from one heel to another. He can't make Slade screw up when he has the initiative. He needs to make Slade commit and reduce his selection of moves to be able to do something useful here.

He shifts his gaze away to one side of the warehouse, trying to make it look like his attention is flagging.

It doesn't work.

Well, clearly waiting around won't work.

If Jason fights using any of the forms and techniques he knows, he's just looking to get thrown again.

He needs to find a way to approach Slade without giving away his intentions.

Thankfully, he has had training in appearing like an ordinary citizen as well. Infiltration ops weren't uncommon, even in his Robin days. Bruce seemed to think that giving his kids some armour and training and a promise of coming to help could keep them safe.

Jason knows now that it had been a lie, but that didn't mean that the training he had received was useless. Not to mention that the League had also given him teachers on that subject so that he could become even better.

Keeping his stance loose-limbed yet casual, he walks up towards Slade. He can see his teacher's stance become more defensive, as it searches for the appropriate pose to respond to... nothing at all.

Jason walks closer and closer, and Slade does not make a move. Still shifting, trying to get a reaction out of Jason.

Clearly, he knows what Jason's doing here. That makes this harder, but at least Jason has a chance. He can work with that.

Besides, there's not much Slade can do to him that's worse than what he's already suffered so far.

When he's within kicking distance, he stops, and stands defiantly, putting one hand on his hips and the other to the side. He tries to appear as inviting as possible. A trick he'd picked up from the working boys and girls of Crime Alley.

Thanks to Dick, he knows that Slade does swing on that side of the fence and therefore will be at least somewhat susceptible to this.

It's a cheap trick, but Jason will always be a street rat. And street rats do whatever it takes to get the upper hand.

As Slade's form falters, Jason leans forward on his right foot, turning around to aim a kick towards the back of Slade's right knee. Slade does manage to recover in time to dodge it, but not in time to formulate a coherent counterattack.

Jason, now side to side with Slade and having caught him in a suboptimal position, tries to use his right arm to catch Slade's left and temporarily remove it from the fight. Slade does manage to block his strike, but again, he's still a few seconds behind Jason on the strategy front. He isn't able to mount an attack of his own.

Jason lets his body move with the hit, leaning on his right leg and flipping over to let his left go right at Slade's head. As Slade tries to push him over and unbalance him, he lets himself lean on Slade instead, using his arm to support his body weight.

Slade realizes what's going on, and angles his head and torso to dodge the hit. Jason brings his lower body close, evading Slade's right arm and letting his whole body fly over Slade.

Recalling one of Cass' ballet performances, he stretches out one arm, then one leg, to try to land faster in an offensive pose. No - he can't do that, Slade would see through him immediately. he immediately decides to enter a non-combat pose instead.

In the time it took him to land, Slade has reorganized his stance as well. Fortunately, he isn't ready to attack or play with Jason yet. This is the best chance he'll get.

He takes two steps towards Slade again, like he's a casual jogger on the street, and then tries to land a fast punch onto Slade. Best case scenario, he lands a debilitating hit, even for a meta like Slade. Worst case scenario, Slade dodges.

Instead, Slade catches his arm and locks it in an unbreakable hold. He then clocks Jason in the chest with the other, winding him up temporarily. And before he can figure out what's even happening, Slade turns around and lands a heavy kick, sending him careening into another shipping container.

As he gets back up, Slade is smiling at him.

"I'll admit it, kid, you have way more talent than Grayson does."

"I'm not trying to just be better than Grayson."

"No, you're trying to be better than your sister. Maybe you are, maybe not. The jury's out on that one. But you have to realize, you're not going to be a better _fighter_ than her."

"That's encouraging. Why did you take up Talia's offer, then?"

"Because you're not trying to be a fighter."

Jason frowns. From what he knows, Slade usually doesn't speak this cryptically. He's more of a straightforward _I'm going to kill you because that's my job_ kind of guy. This is more in line with the shit Ra's says.

"You can come back to life after anything, right? Well, now's the time to learn how to make each life count."

"Yeah? And how am I supposed to do that?"

"Practice."

And then Slade charges at him, and the world blacks out.

\----------------------------------------

It's been five months that he's been here in Metropolis, training with Slade. Thankfully, there have been breaks from the constant dying, with Slade finding a surprisingly regular stream of contracts in the city. Jason's been running tech support for Slade in exchange for the training he's been receiving - he's nowhere near as good as Oracle, but he's good enough to be able to provide meaningful support to anyone who needs it.

Jason's also managed to last an entire day without dying, now. He supposes that it's an achievement of some sort, especially given that Deathstroke the Terminator has been using the entirety of his arsenal of weapons on him now.

He doesn't feel proud, though. Instead, he's antsy. He doesn't know why. He'll figure it out later.

Jason dunks his head under the tap, letting the water wash over his head. He isn't going to waste good drinking water on cooling down, he knows how expensive it is.

Even though he knows that between Talia's fortune and his own, he has enough money lying around to justify that kind of expense, it still feels _wrong_.

_Once a street brat, always a street brat, I guess._

Slade comes over, wearing what seems like his take on casual clothing. It looks like the disguises that come up in shitty comic books.

As Jason sits down, letting the remaining water roll down his body and drench his clothes, Slade takes a seat next to him.

"What are you doing this for, kid?"

Jason cocks his head to the side, encouraging Slade to elaborate.

"You could walk away, you know. I can see that you want an out from the Bat life-" Jason laughs at the grotesque expression on Slade's face when he uttered that ridiculous phrase "-but it feels... redundant for you to be doing this. You're not the type to work under Talia, so what is this for?"

Jason wonders whether it is worth it to have an honest conversation with Slade Wilson, of all people. Then again, what's the worst that could happen? Fuck it.

"I told myself that I was going to fight for those who couldn't turn to anyone else. I'm going to make good on that promise."

Slade laughs.

"You're just like your mother, you know."

Jason knows that he doesn't mean Talia.

"You're both committed to throwing yourselves away."

That wasn't what he'd expected to hear.

"I don't need to read body language to know that you have no concept of self-preservation. And it's not because you can't die, it's because you don't care if you do."

Slade grins. It's somehow both menacing and warm at the same time.

"I'm not sure Talia wants you to be that way, kid. Talk it through. It's going to help."

"Why is Slade Wilson telling me to talk to my mother?"

"Because I know what it feels like to lose a child because they didn't think they could talk to me."

Jason raises an eyebrow.

"Hey, I have a wife and kids. I know I might not look like an ideal father figure, but I still care about my kids."

"You put kryptonite into your daughter's skull."

Slade grimaces.

"I guess you're going to spout some variation of 'I'm not that guy anymore'?"

Slade doesn't really move or speak, but Jason can see the begrudging assent in his posture.

"You know, I don't know exactly what's going on with you, but I guess I'm happy for your newfound familial connections? I don't know what to say here, I've never done this before."

"Don't sweat it, kid."

Slade gets up to leave the warehouse. At the door, he turns around to face Jason.

"For what it's worth, kid, I think you would have been a good soldier. You have it in you."

Without letting Jason get a word in edgewise, he walks out.

Jason decides to ignore how convenient his phrasing was. He doesn't really need to have arc words this obvious in his narrative in the Book of Souls, thank you very much. He'd rather have them be something greater, like "Fuck Batman" or "Fuck Bruce". Yeah, they didn't sound as grand, but they sure got the point across. What the fuck is "a good soldier" supposed to mean?

\----------------------------------------

_"You knew he was going to kill me."_

_"Yes."_

_"And you didn't know if I would come back."_

_"Yes."_

_"Then why did you let him do it?"_

_"I believed you would return. I had to."_

_"Why?"_

_"A mother shall always have faith that her child will come back to her. No matter what."_

\----------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that this is getting closer to the stuff that the series title is announcing. I'm aware of how little Shiva features in this series, but I hope that the series has been worth reading without her being there in body. I'm going to try to draw more and more parallels between Jason and Shiva, and I hope it works.
> 
> Sadly, one of those parallels is the shared suicidal tendencies. That's also going to come up a lot more here on out, so be warned.


	3. Learning to fight (ft. Richard Dragon)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dragon shows Jason how to fight, instead of just taking blows and hoping to survive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not very well-acquainted with Richard Dragon in the comics, so I went with what I know from the bits I have read (mainly related to Barbara becoming Oracle and learning to deal with the loss of her legs). I apologize in advance if it doesn't come off as an authentic representation.

Jason walks up to the unnamed dojo, a nondescript building in a somewhat empty part of Detroit. He feels uncharacteristically nervous - this is the first time he's training under someone who doesn't have something shady going on, as far as he can discern. It's unsettling, to be around someone who is genuinely a nice guy. Even though Talia is his mother, she's also a devious and manipulative woman who will not give an inch to _anyone_.

It's strange, how something like that doesn't make him doubt her love for him. She might be manipulative, but she does always put his interests first - except for the times when Damian is involved. Which he can get behind - he would be willing to take a hit for the kid at a moment's notice too. It's impossible to look at her and doubt her love for her sons.

Yeah, he should probably reconsider the company he keeps.

Oh well, it's a bit too late for that, what with Talia giving him everything he needs to become better than he ever was before.

After all, the news of him coming back wouldn't stay underground for long. Shit like that has a tendency of spreading, and Talia hasn't really been keeping him underground.

He hasn't seen the Bats in a long time now. That visit from Damian, back at Talia's compound seven months ago, was the last he'd seen of anyone from that side of his life, and Damian had clearly come as Talia's son and not as an envoy for Bruce. It was understandable - he needed someone willing to do some actual parenting in this time of crisis, no matter how grown-up he tried to act.

Speaking of the crisis - he's surprised that the Bats are mostly on his side. He would have bet that they would have gone with Bruce like they do every time.

After all, they had all seemed pretty willing to believe a code that _coincidentally_ allows them to feel good about themselves at the expense of others.

That said, he can't really blame them for that - he's guilty of the same crime too. He went after the Replacement because of what he represented, completely ignoring the person that he was.

But somehow, the universe seemed to bend over backwards to try and make excuses for Bruce and his kids whenever they did something shitty.

No point thinking about that now. He'll burn that bridge when he gets to it. Except with Cass - unlike the rest of them, she's been good to him.

He shakes his head, pushing the door and walking in.

\---------------------------------

Richard Dragon, strangely, looks exactly like you would expect one of the best martial artists in the world to look like, while also managing to look nothing like the other great martial artists in the world. He has the toned body and the assured gait of someone who knows exactly how to use all the muscles in their body but still manages to look like the nondescript middle-aged guy next door.

That said, maybe Jason's expectations have been twisted by the general tenor of his interactions with those proficient in the various aspects of violence. After all, the mentors Talia had sent him to over his post-Pit world tour had been chosen for their expertise in _lethal_ techniques, and Dragon had stopped associating with people on that side of the fence since he split with Shiva.

As he sets his bag of unused surveillance equipment and spare clothes down and stretches his muscles, he wonders how this training session will go.

Dragon keeps a watchful eye on him throughout the procedure, sitting in a chair off to the side of the dojo. He's surrounded on either side by lockers, possibly meant for his students.

Once Jason is done with his warm-up exercises, he looks at his new mentor.

 _He better not start pulling some weird_ sensei _shit here. I really don't have time for this._

"What do you know about fighting?"

Jason shakes his head. "No, I don't have time for this."

"Given your age and your recent experiences, I'm certain that you have all the time in the world."

Jason raises an eyebrow.

"You came to learn from me. The least you can do is play by my rules."

Jason can't argue with that.

"Well? I'm waiting."

"'Kay, I'll bite. It's about exchanging blows without collapsing."

Dragon laughs. "That's good. Not exactly correct, but still good."

"Mind explaining yourself, O Wise One?"

Dragon's smile indicates he isn't offended. Good.

"It's a performance. It's two skilled athletes showing off their ability to use their body. And among people like us, it is about showing how close we are to the limits of what is possible for the human body."

"I'm pretty sure that you've heard that I want to exceed those limits."

"From what I understand, your physical abilities are just as human as everyone else. Am I wrong?"

No, he isn't. Coming back to life didn't mean that he healed faster - although the Pit did provide him with accelerated regeneration, that was nowhere close to what was necessary for a substantial shift in fighting style. His abilities had merely allowed him to find out exactly what his limits were.

And Slade had done a pretty good job showing that those limits were painfully constricting. He needed to find a way to be better than that.

Jason nods in assent. Satisfied, Dragon continues explaining his personal philosophy of combat.

"And from what I can see, you have a pretty good grasp on keeping yourself in peak shape. All you need to learn is how to use your body better."

"Please tell me you're not going to suggest some stupid trivial exercise that has some deep meaning behind it."

"No, those are reserved for those who either need physical conditioning or emotional therapy. The first one is unnecessary for you, and the second will be impossible for me. I'd rather not enter battles I cannot win."

He enters a fighting stance. "Instead, we're going to learn more about what your instincts are. Let's see if you have it in you to fight properly."

Jason smiles. "That, I can do."

\---------------------------------

As first lessons go, it's been more challenging than expected. Usually, he either doesn't need to put this much effort, or he doesn't get the chance to.

Dragon doesn't seem to want to show his superiority. Instead, as they move around each other, testing out various techniques to attack and defend themselves, he lets him do as he wishes. Jason gets to show off the skills he has learned since he decided to become the Red Hood, more freely than ever before. When he makes a bad move, Dragon explains where he went wrong and what choices would have been better.

In some fucked up way, it resembles what Jason had pictured university would be like. Discussing the interpretation of a particularly abstruse Shakespeare passage with a calm, wise yet encouraging professor. Being gently guided towards a better understanding of what the Bard's poetry means and conveys, without being mocked for his take.

He almost laughs out loud at the thought.

As Dragon calls a timeout, Jason lets himself relax a bit as he drinks from one of the many glucose bottles he had carried with himself. He looks around, taking in his surroundings with a less analytical and more casually observant eye.

He notices Dragon approach, carrying a fresh towel in one hand. Another one is sitting on his shoulder - probably the one he was using. He can't smell sweat - either Dragon has showered, or the towel was _really_ effective.

Dragon tosses the towel. Jason catches it with ease.

Dragon smiles. He clearly has something to say.

"You're holding back."

"Am I? Why would I do that?"

"That's what I would like you to explain to me."

Jason opens his mouth to speak, but Dragon cuts him off.

"Also, please don't deny it, I can see it. It's pretty obvious. You're not focusing entirely on me, and you're not spending all of your energy on the fight either."

"Why would I do that? I need to watch out for threats and be able to react to them."

"You do know that the Daughter of the Demon is putting her personal agents in the city to keep you safe."

"That doesn't mean that we _are_ safe."

Dragon ponders over the idea, before shrugging his shoulders in assent.

"Well, class dismissed for today. See you tomorrow."

\---------------------------------

Richard draws the session to a close, seemingly satisfied with Jason's performance.

"Your adaptability has improved a lot, as has your ability to land unpredictable attacks and shift between styles. Although you need to work on using Yeonsog from a boxing stance."

"Will do. So, same time tomorrow?"

"No. This is your last lesson."

Jason raises an eyebrow. "Aren't final lessons supposed to be more dramatic?"

"You're Shiva's son. There's enough drama in you walking down the street."

Jason doesn't really have a response to that.

Thankfully (or unfortunately, he can't decide which), Richard isn't looking for one.

"You carry yourself like her. Always looking for a fight."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure my anger issues aren't _that_ bad."

"It's not about anger. As you said, you're always ready for a fight."

"That doesn't mean I'm looking for one. You're prepared to fight all the time, doesn't mean that you go out looking for trouble."

"And from what I recall, that's exactly what you used to do for quite a significant fraction of your life. What you have been doing on many a night here as well."

Damn he hadn't expected to be caught out like that.

"You're more like her than you think."

Jason bristles. He doesn't want to be compared to the woman who would hunt her own child. Would push that child to kill her, over and over again.

"You're not worried about surviving the next fight."

"And yet I trained under you to make sure that I could win every fight I enter."

"And yet, you're not really bothered about whether the enemy can kill you - you're more concerned with being maimed or otherwise disabled. You want to hurt and get hurt, and you know you will make it out of the next scrap alive - but I keep getting the feeling that you want to get into fight after fight after fight until you don't get out."

Jason doesn't really have a response for that.

"You can't live like that. Not really. That's not fighting - that's a _war_. And you're too young for something like that."

"I've already been 'something like that' for years now."

"And it'll be the death of you."

Before Jason can respond with the obvious witty retort, Richard keeps going.

"I'm not going to presume to tell you what you can and cannot do. I have my opinions, yes, but I cannot force them onto you. And from what I understand, you're not the type that will budge."

"You're right about that."

"Shiva has taken for granted that she will die in a glorious fight that will vindicate her legacy, throwing every good thing that she could have had away along the way. I don't want you to do the same."

"All stories end in death, Richard."

"But they don't have to live in the shadow of death all the time. They don't need to seek it out with that kind of feverish intensity."

The older man puts a hand on Jason's shoulder. His face suddenly seems worn and wrinkled, weighed down by the passage of time.

"I know that you will fight her."

Jason doesn't bother denying it. He knows it's going to happen. Maybe not now, but one day, Sandra Woosan will come again, and he will need to stand up against her to make sure his sister can have peace.

" I know that you will win."

Wow. Richard has more faith in him than he expected.

"Let me tell you something I wish I had known, when I was young and dreamed of glory."

He smiles. It's the smile of an old man, who has seen more than his fair share of horrors and managed to survive them.

"You have no control, who lives, who dies, who tells your story."

\---------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am of the firm belief that irrespective of who is actually the best fighter in the DC universe (Cass), Richard Dragon seems like the best _teacher_. All the other people who could take the title (except that they can't because Cass is the best), don't seem to be fit for the job of training others in how to reach their level of skill. (Even Deathstroke's 'training' method before this was just coming at Jason and letting him figure out how to live through it.)


	4. Learning to win (ft. Lady Shiva)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason trains with Shiva. It's debatable, whether he _learns_ much. It is certainly an experience, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to write Jason and Shiva interact without having them talk to each other. Hence, this route. I'm not sure if it worked out as expected, though.

Jason takes a deep breath as he enters Talia's compound, finally letting himself relax now that he is on safe soil.

And isn't that weird, to think of Talia's place, where Ra's al Ghul could arrive at any moment and demand that he be executed, as 'safe'?

Talia shouldn't feel like that. She's the Daughter of the Demon - the smartest, sharpest person he has ever known. She has shown that she is capable of and willing to sacrifice _anyone_ for her goals. And yet, he isn't really apprehensive about any upcoming betrayal. He isn't waiting for the other shoe to drop.

That's a feeling he hasn't had in a long, long time.

That should be what he feels about Bruce. Bruce is the one who picked him off of the streets, decided to give him a home instead of abandoning him to the cruelty of Gotham. He could have easily turned the other way and let the system deal with him, like every other rich asshole would have done. Instead, the man decided to be kind and generous and gave him a shot at a life not destined for doom.

It was probably just his luck that brought doom upon him anyway.

Part of the reason why the Replacement stung the way he did was because it had felt like Bruce had finally gotten the kid he wanted in him. And Jason was now left questioning whether what he had received from Bruce meant anything at all, if it was that easy to lose it.

Jason had wanted Bruce to prove that he had felt something real for him, that what he had gotten was love and not mere hospitality, but... yeah, that did _not_ go well.

And yet, Bruce now represents another one in the lineup of shitty parents he has had so far.

There's probably a joke to be made about having as many parents as he has had lives, but honestly, it doesn't really feel funny. Just sad.

Just like the thought of how much his life has changed since he left Bruce. How just about a year ago, he was thinking of how he could stay in Bruce's good graces, how he could mend his relationship with his family. And now, Bruce is the farthest he's ever been from his mind.

He doesn't want to be defined by Bruce anymore. That man has had too much control over Jason's identity for far too long.

Now, it's time for him to define himself on his own terms.

...By training with his birth mother.

He should really start taking the hint.

\---------------------------------

After a quick conversation with Talia, Jason heads towards the training rooms set aside for him and Shiva.

As he opens the door, he finds her stretching her muscles in preparation for his arrival. Her movements are slow and graceful, almost like a dance.

It reminds him of Cass, and the people he has left behind.

He wonders if she's doing okay. Hopefully the shitshow back in Gotham didn't hit her too hard. It would be nice to be able to catch up with her sometime.

Maybe he can try and ask Shiva later. She probably still keeps tabs on Cass, that's the kind of motherly behaviour he has come to expect of people in the 'best assassin/fighter capable of feats beyond human understanding' sector of the economy.

Upon noticing him enter, she finishes up her routine and gives Jason the once-over. It feels somewhat strange, watching a woman over six feet tall move and act like his little big sister does.

After having examined him, she motions towards a rack of clothing on the side, and the changing rooms further off. It feels strangely similar to the experience in a formal dojo.

Jason nods towards his newest instructor, and goes off to change. He makes an effort to do it fast - Shiva doesn't seem like the overly patient type.

When he returns, wearing what upon closer examination looks like a modified version of one of the League's combat uniform, he notices Shiva standing still in the middle of the room, observing him like a hawk.

As he walks over onto the mat in the centre of the room, he can feel Shiva sizing him up.

Looking at her reveals nothing - she seems to be a bystander on the street. She is not in any particular stance, prepared to attack or defend. Nor is she favouring one side, preparing to dodge or jump. She is as nondescript as any random stranger on the street.

And yet, he can sense the fact that she is _ready_. Ready to take him down once he makes a single bad move.

Jason keeps his own body as relaxed as possible, also choosing to discard any stance whatsoever. He knows by now that it does more harm than good.

They haven't said a word to each other yet, but Jason _knows_ that they are in a fight. He _knows_ it, like he knows that Shiva is prepared to attack him, like he knows what will happen when he goes for her. He can see it play out in his mind's eye, like a particularly tense passage in a cheap thriller.

The two of them circle around each other, as they try to bait the other into a false move. Jason feels like he is falling back into something that he has known forever but never seen before, a piece of him that has always been there without being a part of him.

He wonders if this is what he has got from Shiva, if this is what Cass feels every time she jumps into battle every night.

Shiva takes one step closer towards him. He replicates the movement, coming one step closer himself.

He takes one more step in towards her, and she reciprocates.

He takes another step.

She takes another one.

He moves closer again.

So does she.

One more step.

And one more.

And one more still.

But she doesn't move.

He's fucked up, and they both know it.

Her left fist flashes out towards his solar plexus - a devastating hit that would have been extremely painful and damaging.

He blocks it and turns away, giving himself a bit of wiggle room for the rest of the showdown.

It's a lost cause, but he's _not_ going to go down without a fight, dammit.

She turns to match his movements, aiming a kick to the back of his right knee. It would pull him down, giving Shiva a better position from which to finish him.

He lets her land the hit, but rolls with it as best he can to move into a safer position.

However, giving Shiva time and space to reposition herself was a mistake.

As soon as Jason is back on his feet, Shiva is onto him, following up his roll with a hit to his right side, trying to force him to tip over and lose his balance.

Jason decides to take another fall, but this time, he decides to twist and try to land a hit on Shiva's legs.

As her side kick pushes him back down, he twists as he falls and tries to trap her right leg and make her lose her balance.

Instead, she turns and jumps, and lands on her left, giving her a firm advantage over Jason as he lies prone on the floor.

Jason expects her to lock his arm, and prepares to surrender and ready up for the next fight.

Instead, her right leg comes barrelling into his neck, and the world goes white in a flash of pain.

\---------------------------------

Training with Shiva has been... painful.

Ten weeks of intense, excruciating pain, in every single part of his body.

His neck still hurts from the first time Shiva broke it with a kick. However, compared to the pain in his left leg - which came from that time when she cracked his femur so that it would puncture his femoral artery - it feels like a relaxing massage.

But hey, he's been dying a bit less these last few days, so at least his tells are becoming harder and harder to see, right? There's got to be _some_ positive outcome here, right?

At least, he hopes so. Shiva doesn't seem like the type of person who would humour him and let him feel like he's getting better to soothe his ego.

Today, he's been lucky enough to get away with just a few hairline fractures in his arms and legs and a broken floating rib. At least it's not one of the most necessary ribs. That's how ribs work, right?

He's fuzzy on the details there. He hasn't gone back to studying for medical school, so all that he has to draw on is experience and memories of a time he wants to forget.

As he sits near the exit, between the towel rack and the door to the bathrooms, He notices Shiva walking up to him. She's carrying an ice-pack, some wet towels, and... a first-aid kit?

She hands him the ice-pack, which he applies to his right cheek. The bruise he got from her right cross is still stinging, despite it being inflicted over four hours ago.

She motions towards his ribs, and separates the first-aid kit from the towels. Her eyes carry a hesitant look he hasn't seen before with her.

Jason grunts and nods. Odds are, it might help.

Shiva sets the towels down on the towel rack and puts on the gloves. She picks up the bandages and looks towards Jason, and moves her head and eyes sharply to the side.

Jason takes off the t-shirt he had changed into, leaving his chest bare and the displaying the obvious broken rib.

Shiva pulls out the packet of bandages and opens it up, removing a long roll of what looks like a padded piece of cloth. It looks nothing like the normal bandages he is used to.

She puts a hand on his knee, and looking at her eyes, he can feel the reassurance flood through. He raises his arms, giving her access to his torso.

After putting another bit of... what honestly looks and feels like warm foam near his broken rib, she wraps the special bandage around the injured area, forming a band across his chest. Her movements feel unnaturally gentle - hands this calloused should not be able to move with such gentleness.

After she is done bandaging his ribs with the mystery bandage, she moves on to a strange toothpaste tube of... something that is definitely _not_ toothpaste. She squeezes some of it onto his injured leg, and removes her gloves. She looks him in the eye again, and the hesitant expression is back.

Jason nods, again. She's not a threat, he knows this. And it seems like she knows what she's doing.

She massages the strange compound all over his thigh, taking especial care to avoid injuring him further. It feels odd, to be seeing Shiva like this.

It feels nice, too.

\---------------------------------

One fine day, halfway through training, Jason finds that his time with Sandra is done.

It's been over six months so far. He has gotten to the point where he can reliably match her, if not beat her. He can often take her down, but she usually pays back in the very next round.

He's trapped Sandra in a pretty secure hold, one knee trapping one arm, the other leg making sure that Shiva can't curl up into a better defensive stance, and his left pointed right at her neck in an offensive position.

One she taps out, he's prepared for another round, but she nods at him and steps out of the ring.

It's a somewhat anticlimactic end to his training. He hasn't even performed that well today.

Yet, Sandra seems very confident, going back to the bathrooms to presumably clean up and take her leave.

Jason can see the respect and pride pouring off of her. She turns around to look at him before entering the stalls, and her expression is soft, unlike what one would expect out of Lady Shiva.

He nods at her, and decides to shower in the peace of his private room. He can take some time to think through his next step.

As he walks back to his room, his mind travels back to the time when Lady Shiva had lied to Batman about him not being her son. He wonders what could have been if she had told the truth back then.

He would have definitely avoided dying to the Joker. But would he still consider Bruce a good parent? Or would he have found another way to lose his father's trust and favour?

Would Shiva chase him around the world, trying to force him to kill her, instead of going after Cass?

He knows that choosing to train with Lady Shiva would have consequences. Sandra was unlikely to do something like this if she did not expect a return on her investment, and given his lineage, he had a fair idea of what kind of return she wanted.

Well, he can deal with that when the time came.

Now, he needs to talk to Durra.

\---------------------------------

Sandra walks into Talia's office, where the latter is poring over a stack of boring documents.

"Princess."

"Lady Shiva."

Sandra shifts from one foot to another.

"Talia."

"Sandra."

"You knew."

"About what?"

"My son."

"He's not your son."

"He is my blood, and he owes me a debt."

"He owes you nothing. I might owe you payment for your services, but Jason owes you _nothing_.

"Nevertheless, he will give me what I want."

"That he might. But he is not obliged to."

"It is strange, for you to consider him your own."

"I care for him. He deserves it."

"He deserves a great many things. None of them have much to do with the things we want."

"Oh, they do have much to do with the things _I_ want. I want what is best for him."

"You do not treat your own blood son with such affection."

"He does not need to have my blood for me to love him."

Sandra laughs.

"And there we have it."

"Have what?"

"Why both of you... feel the way you do about each other."

"I don't understand."

"He does. And sometime in the future, you will."

Sandra walks out, leaving Talia to her paperwork.

She will get what she wants. Jason will give it to her.

After all, he has the same venom inside him.

\---------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was much harder to write than expected. Mostly because I kept procrastinating and work is ramping up more and more, giving me only really two days a week to write. I hope this isn't too bad.

**Author's Note:**

> This is where the 'Son of Shiva' bit starts to kick in. I'm writing this to draw comparisons between Shiva and Jason rather than to establish some 'line of succession' of some sort. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to pull off the whole thematic similarity angle I'm going for here, so wish me luck.
> 
> On a completely separate note, half of me is tempted to write the story in an XML file in VSCode just to take advantage of the fact that I can put quotes and tags around selected text really easily, it would make manipulating the markup much easier.


End file.
